Yes, beauty competitions focus on appearances and degrade women.

No matter what beauty competitions are called, they are essentially about a person's looks and therefore about chance rather than any positive redeeming qualities in an individual. They reinforce that the most important part of being female is being attractive for men, which is an archaic and misogynist school of thought.

Women degrade themselves to fit modern beauty standards

There are strong repercussions for women who engage in modern fashion and female lifestyle trends. The trouble with the model of female perection is that it requires women to harm themselves and degrade their total presence. Women are turned into creatures that are less than human and demoted to objects thanks to current ideas of what is beautiful as set down by beauty pageants. It is better to strive for personal happiness rather than seek out ideals dictated by popular culture.

High glitz beauty pageants convey to women that natural beauty is non-existant.

High glitz beauty pageant winners often have to take advantage of fake teeth, fake hair, fake tans and a considerable amount of makeup. The emphasis on so many fake elements required to achieve beauty conveys the message that there is no such thing as natural beauty. In sending this message, beauty competitions are degrading.

No, women are not degraded by beauty competitions.

Because women have the choice to participate in beauty competitions, these pageants are not degrading to them. Moreover, most beauty competitions involve more than just a consideration of a woman's physical attributes. Rather, these competitions also typically require a presentation of a participant's talents and a consideration of her ability to handle queries presented by the host or judges.